Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Ella Minnow Pea, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Totalitarianism, Complacency, and Resistance
Freedom of Speech
Betrayal vs. Solidarity
Blind Faith, Reason, and Logic
Summary
Analysis
Ella Minnow Pea, a young woman living in Nollopton on the island of Nollop, writes a letter to her cousin Tassie, who lives in the more rural town of Nollopville. Ella explains that a few days prior, something interesting happened to the statue in the center of town. The statue is of Nevin Nollop, the man for whom the island is named, and who is credited with the pangram “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” Each letter of the pangram is inscribed on a tile on the monument, and one of them fell to the ground and shattered.
Ella’s first letter to Tassie sets the scene of the society in which she and Tassie live. The fact that the island is named because of a man’s achievement in language sets up the idea that language is integral to their society—indeed, Tassie goes on to say how the citizens’ use of language sets them apart from all other societies.
Themes
Ella notes that the High Island Council immediately called an emergency meeting when learning of the fallen tile. Ella was surprised by this, as she and her fellow launderesses believed that the tile fell because after 100 years, the glue holding it onto the statue simply failed. She notes, however, that her logic was ignored and that public speculation has been kept to a minimum for fear of being reprimanded by the government.
Ella immediately places the Council outside the realm of logic, as they jump straight to the conclusion that there must be some kind of hidden meaning behind the tile’s falling rather than assuming the statue is simply worn-down. Yet Ella also demonstrates her and others’ tendency towards complacency, as they passively worry about the punishment of the government rather than openly speculating about what’s going on.
Themes
Ella affirms that the citizens of Nollop take pride in Nevin Nollop and his legacy, and she notes that the world would be very different without his brilliant sentence. Ella explains that Nollop hasn’t received much recognition elsewhere but that he receives much acclaim on the island, where the citizens take a great deal of pride in their language.
Ella again emphasizes how important language is to the society and its culture. Given that Ella has just implied how afraid the Nollopians are to speculate about the statue, then, it’s clear that there is an ideological gap between the citizens’ values and the Council’s censorship of ideas.
Themes
After the Council convened, they announced that they believed the fallen tile was some kind of sign sent from Nollop from beyond the grave. They released a verdict saying that because the tile bore the letter “Z,” they took this to mean that Nollop wanted the letter “Z” to be excised from the island’s vocabulary. Thus, from now on, penalties will be issued to anyone who uses “Z” in speech or in writing.
The actions of the Council are ironic, as Nollop prized speech and the expansion of its boundaries, while the Council interprets the tile’s falling to mean that Nollop wants to limit the citizens’ speech. Thus, Dunn demonstrates that the basis of the Council’s actions is illogical, purely concocted by their own superstitious beliefs.
Themes
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Ella outlines the punishments the Council decided upon: for the first offence, a person will receive a public oral reprimand from the Law Enforcement Brigade (L.E.B.). For the second, offenders will be offered the option of flogging or headstock. Third offenses will result in banishment from the island; if this is refused, the person will be put to death.
The Council’s punishments establish it as a totalitarian regime, as there is seemingly little democracy and no tolerance for disobeying the laws. Yet the fact that the first offense is relatively light, and that for now only one uncommon letter is affected, makes it easier for citizens to accept the edicts put forth.
Themes
Ella is shocked at the developments that have taken place, but she considers that the Council could be right about Nollop’s will. She scans her letter and she finds that she has only used the word “Z” three times, and she writes that he could have easily found alternate words to use in these instances. Ella wonders if this edict will make them more deliberate in their choices of language. She closes her letter to Tassie by explaining that the edict will go into effect in two weeks’ time, and that she will, for the time being, cautiously give it the benefit of the doubt.
In showing the edict the benefit of the doubt, Ella and the other citizens on the island demonstrate the issue with complacency in the face of the limitations on freedom of speech. Though the edicts may not seem too bad at first, allowing for even a minor restriction of rights such as this gives the Council leeway to further censor the Nollopians in the future.
Themes
Tassie replies to Ella, explaining that edicts like this only make the island more medieval. She is shocked by the developments in Nollopton and she brings up some of the consequences of losing the letter “Z”: all books containing the letter “Z” will be outlawed, meaning that most books on the island will be destroyed.
Not only will speech be limited, but Tassie also suggests that the island’s cultural institutions will be torn apart by the edicts, thus destroying the bedrock of the society itself.
Themes
Tassie is outraged at the fact that no one is protesting the edict, deeply worried that this will rob citizens of the ability to communicate freely. She argues that Nollopians are “well-educated, well-versed, and well-spoken,” unlike their “vocabu-lazy American neighbors.” Tassie wonders if Nollop would want to see language so diminished, and she comes to the conclusion that the Council is wrong.
Tassie notes the hypocrisy and illogical nature of the Council’s edicts, noting that Nollop wouldn’t want their language to be so limited. Even though Tassie is more resistant to the Council’s edicts than Ella is, her letter still highlights the fact that she, too, is only venting her frustrations via letter. Neither of the girls are taking action against the Council, making Tassie’s internal resistance rather moot.
Themes
Tassie closes her letter by noting that she, like Ella, only used the letter “Z” in three unnecessary circumstances, including “vocabu-lazy.” But she argues that choosing to use the letter or not is her right, and it should not be “eradicated by stroke of High Council Pen.”
Tassie affirms the necessity of maintaining the freedom of speech, even if the use of certain words is only symbolic, because of the larger implications that limiting speech could (and will) have on the island.
Themes
One day prior to the eradication of “Z,” Ella’s father Amos writes a note to Ella, saying that he is out picking up some ceramic mix—he has decided to start molding moonshine jugs to sell. Afterward, he writes, he will pick up mixed nuts and assorted beverages for their party the following evening, to say goodbye to the letter “Z.” He thanks God for the abundance of bread and fish on the island during these restrictive times.
Amos’s letter to Ella further reveals just how complacent the citizens initially are—they are not only accepting the Council’s edict, they are actually celebrating the removal of one of the letters of the alphabet.Additionally, Amos’s gratitude to God hints that the citizens’ religious freedom, too, might be challenged by the Council’s edicts.
Themes
On the night before the “Z” ban goes into effect, Ella writes Tassie a few minutes before midnight. She instructs Tassie to burn it as soon as she receives it, so that Tassie and her mother are not punished for possessing writing that contains the banned letter “Z.” Ella explains a few developments in the city, including the fact children under eight are exempt from the laws and that Ella’s Uncle Zachary will now go by his middle name, Isaac.
Ella’s reports examine the ramifications of the Council’s actions. Exempting children under eight from the law in some ways makes sense, but in others seems completely arbitrary, again displaying how the Council is acting purely on its own beliefs. Additionally, Ella’s uncle’s name change emphasizes how people are not only being stripped of speech, but of identity—foreshadowing the other fundamental rights that are soon to break down.
Themes
In Ella’s letter, she uses several of the many words that will be eradicated, lamenting how many will be banished from their vocabulary. She also confirms that in Nollopton, the books have all disappeared. She notes that they’ll have to write new ones but that they won’t not be able to talk about what has happened in history books, “Because to write of it, is to write it.”
Ella confirms Tassie’s prediction, demonstrating how the bedrocks of society are disappearing even after only a single letter is banned. In addition to the books, Ella also realizes that the island’s history itself is now in danger, because they can never describe what exactly has happened without using the illicit letter. In this way, losing even one tiny component of the freedom of speech proves to be incredibly detrimental for Nollop’s past, present, and future.
Themes
